Applying the “calculus” of negligence spelled out in Wyong Shire Council v Shirt (1980) 146 CLR 40, this paper aims to show that the reasonable person will carefully investigate the claims of Jesus Christ:
Resurrection of Jesus
The Calculus of Christianity- breakfast seminar Oct 30
For those who are in or can make it to Newcastle, I am speaking at a breakfast seminar on Wednesday Oct 30 (7:30-8:30 am) in the Newcastle CBD (Nuspace, the Uni city campus) x703. The topic is “The Calculus of Christianity”! Here is what it is about:
Both professionally and personally, we are constantly making calculations around risk. What would happen if we were to extend those calculations to the claims of Jesus Christ? Join us at our next Newcastle City Legal as Torts Lecturer Assoc. Prof. Neil Foster uses Wyong Shire Council v Shirt to do just that.
What would a “reasonable person” (for local purposes, the user of the Newcastle Light Rail!) make of the claims of Jesus, and how should they respond?
Registrations here. All welcome, but would be especially good to see local lawyers and anyone else interested in the law!
Zombie Jesus? City Legal Newcastle, April 5
Easter is coming, when Christians celebrate what seems like an amazing claim: that Jesus Christ rose from the dead! Is this just a first century Zombie story, or is it grounded in historical events? The Newcastle Christian Lawyers Fellowship, in partnership with “City Legal”, invite those who want to consider this claim to come to a breakfast meeting on Wednesday April 5, 7:30-8:30 am, at NuSpace (the city campus of Newcastle Uni, corner of Hunter St and Auckland St), room x-703.
Does it really matter whether Jesus rose from the dead? And just how much weight can be placed on the evidentiary material in the New Testament? Join us at our second-ever Newcastle City Legal as David Robertson returns to answer these (and other!) questions.
More information here, and registration is open now! Charge is $5 (and free coffee), or $10 for pastries with coffee. Everyone is welcome to come: lawyers, law students, or those just interested in the questions!
A Legal Evaluation of the Evidence for the Resurrection of Jesus
On this Easter long weekend, as Christians around the world are remembering and celebrating the key events of the faith, the death and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth, readers may find a paper I wrote a little while ago helpful in evaluating the legal status of the various pieces of evidence supporting the fact of the resurrection. As I note there:
We need to be clear about this: the fact that the resurrection of Jesus actually, literally happened in the Middle East about 2000 years ago, is vital if Christianity is to be taken seriously. Christianity may or may not have a set of moral principles that make living in society more pleasant- but if the Bible is taken seriously, the moral principles are not at the centre of the Christian faith. Christianity stands or falls on a set of events said to have occurred at a specific time, in a specific place.
I have linked to this paper on this blog previously, but I think it is one of the more important ones that I have written, and worth sharing again. I trust and pray that those who see Christianity as a mere “fable” or fiction might find here some reasons to reconsider the powerful evidence.
As I said last time:
I am fully persuaded, by this evidence, that Jesus of Nazareth rose from the dead in the 1st century; and that fact was the turning point of history. If you haven’t made up your mind about this yet, or even if you decided long ago without really looking into it as an adult, I invite you to read and consider carefully.
Law and Religion Australia 